Wednesday, March 18, 2015

Customized Clocks Make Great Gifts

Design a Personalized Clock for a Special Person

Most of us find ourselves occasionally needing a gift for someone who seems to have everything. Why not design a wall clock as that gift? Whether a person needs to read the time on the wall or not, everyone loves something personal decorating the wall in the room where they spend the most time. Everyone has an interest and appreciates wall decor that recognizes that special interest.

The clock above would be appropriate for that friend who collects anything related to parrots, who has a parrot, or who has a special interest in tropical birds. But using the method below, you could substitute a photo of your friend's own parrot or other bird for the one in this design. You could do the same for a friend with a cat, dog, horse, donkey, or any other animal. And there are always children and grandchildren that are wonderful to see every time you look at the clock.

Here's How Design Your Own Custom Wall Clock from Scratch On Zazzle

Prepare an image of about 3225 pixels square and 300 dpi resolution and save it where you can find it easily. .
Square Clock Template Check out more Wall Clocks

To design your own clock, follow these easy steps. Be sure to have the artwork or photo you want to use as your clock face image handy. Here's how I created the clock below.

Pick a shape and size

Click the customize button under the image.

Click "add image."

Upload the image from your computer or file on Zazzle.

Add your numbers. In the clock below I did each number as a separate text element so I could make them irregular. If you prefer not to have numbers, don't add them.

For each text element you can use the edit dropdown menus to change text size, style, and color. I used the "arrange" dropdown to rotate some of the numbers. I also dragged some numbers around to mix them up by clicking the text box of the number to make the box for it appear on the screen, and then I dragged the box to where I wanted it to go. Be sure to use a very large image at 300 dpi resolution. My editor lets me edit by inches, and the large square and round clocks need to have an image 10.75 inches square or in diameter. Small round clocks have an eight inch diameter. When you finish your creation, double check your spelling and make sure everything is as you intended.

Put the item in your cart. If you want a similar "Who cares" clock with an image of your favorite place or activity, follow the link to this clock, click "customize," and click the box containing the name of the image already on the product. Then click "change image." You will be able to select the image you want to use and upload it, and it will replace the image that's there. Repeat with any of the text boxes listed under the edit menus. Maybe you don't want to change the numbers, because that's a lot of work, but you might want to change the "Who Cares?" text to something else.

Below is another variation on the square clock. (The images I had available seemed to look better on a square clock than a round one.) For this clock I chose an interest -- baking. I just happened to have a picture for it. You could customize by clicking the link to this clock and using your own picture of a lovely cake or pie of loaf of bread to replace my date bars. Or maybe you prefer making soup and you have a steaming pot of soup image. You can replace my date bars with your soup, and then change my text to "It's always time to make soup." Since that's longer, you might need to make the type size smaller to fit it in.
If sports or games interest you more than kitchen activities, use an appropriate picture and then change the text to one of these or your own idea.

The Quality of Zazzle Clocks

The clocks you can order from Zazzle are made by the Acrylic Idea Factory in Tuscon, Arizona. Out of the 314 customers who reviewed the clocks they received, the average rating they gave their clocks was 4.7 out of a possible 5. (293 people gave 4-5 star ratings and only 21 gave lower ones.) Many satisified customers don't bother to write reviews, but the unsatisfied customers are very likely to sound off. Most reviewers liked the quality of the clock bodies and were surprised at how sturdy they were. They expected them to hold up for years of use. Most people were also very happy with the print quality. Many commented on how easy the clocks were to set up and use and on how simple it was to insert and change the AA battery (not included).

In most cases, those who were not happy were disappointed because they had not read the descriptions properly. One person thought she would be getting a clock with real forks and spoons on it instead of an image. Another person complained because the images were very small in the picture on the website and she didn't realize the clock she ordered for children with little fairy figures on the edge was intended for adults. If a figure is too small for you to see the details clearly, most browsers have a zoom feature that allows you magnify the entire page. I know Chrome has this. So if you are in doubt, zoom in and get a good look at the design before you order.

When customizing your clocks with your own images, remember that the quality of the image you upload will determine the how your finished clock will look. Some of the complaints were really due to customers uploading images that did not contrast enough with the clock hands. The clock hands are black, and will look best when they will not be on a very dark background.

A couple of people expected the clock hands to be heavier than they were and were upset because they can bend. But heavier hands would not move as easily and there is a reason to keep them light. It's best to put the clocks high enough on the wall to be out of reach of small children who might try to play with the hands.

To make sure you are one of the happy customers, read all descriptions carefully, zoom in to see image details, and make sure your image is large enough, has high resolution, and will contrast well and not be covered by the clock hands on important image parts.

Sometimes Seeing Clocks Others Have Designed Will Give You Ideas for Your Own
You can personalize any of these with text or use as is.

I'm hoping some of these will give you ideas for creating your own clocks by customizing or personalizing one of these designs. There is everything here from abstract art to animal, sports, occupational, literary, travel, and children's literature designs. If you can think of it, someone has designed a clock for it. One of the clocks you discover is sure to inspire your own ideas, since when we see what someone else has done, we can think of ways to rework it for someone we know.

I got a lot of fresh designing prompts from browsing these designs of others. When you click the links here, they will lead you on a merry journey of browsing even more interesting clocks. The imaginations of these artists are limitless.

The clock below is perfect for a cyclist. The bottom link will lead you to other appropriate designs with wheels. You will know which will resonate with your friend or loved one. So often I wondered what a teen-aged boy might want, and a sports related clock might be just the thing he would love and not outgrow.

What child would not love a special clock in their room with their own name on it? Zazzle has an amazing variety of designs pertaining to almost any child's interest. Find the clock and change the name. Shopping done! Unless you find yourself wanting to buy for more than one child when you see all those fabulous choices. Just be sure you choose a clock with numbers for children who may not be used to knowing where the numbers should be.

Is there a musician on your list? The clock below will fit either a vocalist or someone who plays an instrument. Clocks are also available featuring almost any instrument you can think of, and you can find colors to fit any decor. Great for dorm rooms or music studios.

Is there an animal lover on your list? How better to customize than with a picture of their pet or pets on a clock they will see every day. Many people add "Remember to feed the cat (or dog) " on the clock showing their pet. If a pet has crossed the rainbow bridge, one could add text similar this: "Remember the good times." Just be sure to find a photo that won't have an important part of the face covered with the hands mechanism.

Penguin lovers will be happy to have so many choices in colors and designs on clocks featuring penguins. There are artsy designs, superb photos, and even cartoon characters.

What I have showed you above only scratches the surface of the thousands of wall clock designs you can find on Zazzle. To find just the perfect gift, use search terms that focus on occupations, interests, age-related humor, and anything else that comes to mind with regard to that person. In closing, here are more of my own personal favorites.

12 comments:

I absolutely love these customized clocks! They really are a great gift idea and would truly be fun to design for specific friends and family members. I really appreciate the instructions for designing your own customized clock. Zazzle can seem a bit overwhelming at first, but your directions will definitely help the beginner feel right at home.

Welcome to Review This! BarbRad! I have enjoyed your articles online for many years and we are delighted to have you as a member of our Contributors staff.

One reason I love Zazzle is because there are so many possibilities for finding the perfect gift. Often that perfect gift is one you make yourself. Zazzle makes it easy to do that without ever getting your hands dirty or developing a new skill set.

I feel right at home here working here with my old friends again. Thanks for taking me on as a contributor.

Heather, I know I'm going to enjoy being here. So good to be back in touch with those I've missed as we all spread out to other sites. I love Zazzle products and order them myself, so it's fun to help others discover them.

Love your review of these fabulous clocks available on Zazzle. Customized clocks are perfect to find one that exactly fits your decor or interest. BTW, Barb, I have fallen in love with the 'Who Cares' clock! It's not the message; it's the scene. That has GOT to be Morro Rock in Morro Bay, CA. Am I right? I lived for 7 years where that was a view for me. :-) Brings back fond memories!

You are right. It is Morro Rock. I love taking photos there. I have Morro Rock on many of my Zazzle products. I recently sold a canvas print of it, and I know I've also sold hats and cards. You aren't the only one who likes Morro Rock. It must have been nice to see it every day.

These clocks are gorgeous! What a terrific idea to use our photos of family or friends or to personalize a clock and give it to them as a gift; now why haven't I done this yet! This would make a beautiful gift that would last a lifetime, not to mention how easy it is to do!

What I like about Zazzle clocks are that almost anyone would love to have one, especially if it's obvious a lot of thought went into customizing it just for them. In today's world so often the personal touch is missing and even gifts can be quite impersonal. Something made just for you makes you feel valued and known. Anyone can buy a gift card, but not everyone will take the time to let a gift say something personal.

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